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As a member of the Board of Directors Bror Myllykoski, head of Administration at the Åland Islands Peace Institute was one of eleven participants in the field trip of the Finnish Peace Association to Brussels in the end of September 2013.
MEP Tarja Cronberg , who is also the chairman of the Finnish Peace Association , presented the work of the European Parliament, highlighting current issues such as the Syria crisis including the situation in the surrounding region and the role of Russia. She also mentioned Defense Cooperation in the EU as an important issue on the agenda. The information event was also attended by a group of journalists from Finland.
The participants were able to follow the Subcommittee on Security and Defence , which debated the implementation of the common foreign and security policy.
The group also made a visit to the NATO headquarters, where Finland has had a representative since 1997. Ambassador Pia Rantala-Engberg presented the work of the representation, whose role is mainly to comply with and report on the NATO work. Colonel Arto Vaarala introduced the military peace cooperation and crisis management.
The group also visited the EU Parliament’s visitors’ center Parlementarium, where a exhibition on the Nobel Peace Prize is displayed.
The group also visited EPLO, The European Peacebuilding Liaison Office, where director Catherine Woollard with staff informed about the activities, that primarily focuses on providing support for MEPs in Brussels in issues such as peace and conflict prevention . EPLO also serves as a “platform” for NGOs.
